The New York Yankees are caught in a tight race for the AL East crown. The Blue Jays are up a few games in first and the Red Sox are hot on New York's heels, so we are in for a competitive sprint to the finish line. That ought to mean GM Brian Cashman and the Yankees are aggressive in pursuit of upgrades prior to the July 31 trade deadline. As the saying goes, you need to give something to get something.
Yankees fans like to think their team is operating at a competitive disadvantage — that their organizational cachet and outsized spending power can make teams more reluctant to trade with them. Nobody wants to help the Yankees, right? There's not much evidence to support those claims, but sure. The Yankees are a glitzy, historically accomplished big-market franchise. As such no one is going to do their reigning AL champs any favors.
It will require aggressive offers in order for New York to meaningfully improve the roster. That could mean floating No. 2 prospect Spencer Jones, a talented 24-year-old outfielder whose production with Triple-A Scranton is starting to catch the attention of MLB.
He roped two home runs on Sunday, giving him 10 dingers in 16 games since being promoted from Double-A.
Spencer Jones is UNSTOPPABLE! A two-homer game gives him 10 in 16 games at Triple-A! pic.twitter.com/igHRrG3EZA
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 20, 2025
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Spencer Jones gets red-hot just in time for Yankees' trade deadline
Jones went into Sunday's affair slashing .397/.459/.841 in 15 games for the Triple-A RailRiders. That is obviously not sustainable, but he's going heating up further with less than two weeks under the trade deadline. These next 11 days are put-up or shut-up time for MLB front offices. Now is the perfect window for a top prospect like Jones to catch the attention of an opposing front office's scouting department.
New York fans have been reluctant to engage with Jones trade speculation in the past, but let's be realistic about where things stand. Jones is the Yankees' No. 2 prospect, but he is no longer on the MLB Pipeline Top 100, which encompasses the best prospects from around the league. Jones went from a star at Vanderbilt to a star at the lower levels of New York's farm system. The production has never wavered too dramatically, but he strikes out a lot and is nothing special in the field.
Until Jones can prove he's a sustainable contact hitter in MLB, there will be skepticism. That is why the Yankees should capitalize on this hot streak and consider, if the price is right, moving Jones for an immediate upgrade.
Yankees can flip Spencer Jones for bullpen or infield help
Jones is 24 years old and has still not made his Yankees debut. While the raw power profile is undeniably appealing, it's fair to wonder if he will even be consistent enough against big-league stuff. As such, trading him for an immediate rotation upgrade — FanSided's Zachary Rotman floats Pittsburgh's Mitch Keller as a potential target — makes sense. The Pirates, for example, need hitting in the worst of ways. Keller is a workhorse on the mound and a potential SP2 behind Max Fried once the playoffs roll around.
Other top available pitchers, such as Zac Gallen or even Mackenzie Gore, would almost certainly require Jones as part of the return package. Moreover, if the Yankees look for substantial upgrades on the left side of the infield, Jones could function as trade bait for a team in need of outfield depth.